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From the FasterSkier archive — posts syndicated from athletes’ and coaches’ own blogs between 2004 and 2012, kept online as published. Current coverage is at fasterskier.com.

Tag: Jizerska Padesatka

Ski Classics Opens with Doubleheader in Italy
Last year’s Team Tempo Prologue in Livigno, Italy, which Team Coop (in bib 1) won. This year, the team prologue will again open the Ski Classics series in Livigno on Saturday, followed by the shortened La Sgambeda classic race on Sunday. (Photo: Visma Ski Classics)

The 2016 Ski Classics kicks off with a doubleheader in Italy on Saturday and Sunday, and the marathon regulars are chomping at the bit to get started with the long-distance race series.

The 15-kilometer Proteam Prologue in Livigno, Italy, on Saturday opens the show for the marathon series, now called the Visma Ski Classics (with a new title sponsor in place of Swix), which has been extended to nine venues this season.

Seraina Boner of Team Coop (now called Team Exspirit) after winning the 2014 La Sgambeda in Italy last season. (Photo: Ski Classics)

On the women’s side, last season’s Ski Classics champion Katerina Smutna of the Czech Republic will be on the start line for the first races this weekend, but she will face plenty of competition. Team Exspirit’s Seraina Boner of Switzerland is eager to take back the overall title, which she has earned three times (2011, 2013 and 2014), beginning with La Sgambeda.

Poland’s World Cup star and the queen of the FIS Tour de Ski, Justyna Kowalczyk, will be doing several of the Ski Classics long-distance events this season with the Norwegian Team Santander headed by the Aukland brothers. And Britta Johansson Norgren of Sweden, who was on the podium at several of the Ski Classics events last season, is one to keep an eye on. Last season, she raced with the all women’s team Ski Pro Am, and this year she is a part of Sweden’s Lager 157 Ski Team, with teammates such as three-time Vasaloppet champion Jörgen Brink of Sweden.

Among the men, 2015 Ski Classics overall champion Petter Eliassen of Norway makes his season debut in Italy this weekend. He will have to fend off a large and deep field of competitors such as Norway’s 43-year-old marathon veteran Anders Aukland and his Santander teammates, including younger brother Jørgen Aukland, and former World Cup skiers Tord Asle Gjerdalen of Norway and Johan Olsson of Sweden.

Norwegian stayers such as Johan Kjölstad, Øystein Pettersen, Eldar Rønning, and John Kristian Dahl of Team United Bakeries, as well as Ski Classics veterans of Team Exspirit, including Daniel Richardsson, Anders Södergren and Jimmie Johnsson of Sweden and Norway’s Morten Eide Pedersen, will certainly do their best to make it a tough season opener from Day 1.

Two unique competitions in Livigno

The Prologue, in which the teams must field at least three racers to compete, was added last year, and is a team effort where the third person’s time determines the team result. The next day, on Sunday, the skiers embark on the first distance event, the now-24-kilometer classic technique La Sgambeda.

Team Santander’s Anders Aukland (c) after winning the 2014 La Sgambeda in Livigno, Italy. Johan Kjølstad (l) and Øystein Pettersen (r) both of Team United Bakeries, placed second and third, respectively. (Photo: Ski Classics)

Team Exspirit (previously known as Team Coop) won the prologue last year and is aiming to defend the title this year.

“We have had great preparations here in Livigno, skiing on the race course and acclimatizing to the high altitude,” team member Jimmie Johnsson said in a press release on Friday. “Of course, we’re aiming to defend our victory and we’re faster this season than ever before.”

Team Exspirit’s Seraina Boner won La Sgambeda last year after breaking away from the field on the hard climb at the turning point of the course. This year, the course is shortened to from 35 k to 24 k due to lack of snow and is also flatter. While Boner prefers more elevation gain, she was still optimistic before the race.

“The tougher course fits me better than the flatter one we have now,” she said. “But I will do my best, and I am really excited to finally start the long distance season together with my teammates.”

While the Team Prologue is only open to professional teams registered with the 2016 Ski Classics, La Sgambeda on Sunday is open to amateurs and pros alike.

Saturday’s Prologue will be held on the original course, but due to lack of snow in Livigno, the classic marathon on Sunday will be run on 6 k loops.

“Last season, seven of the nine Ski Classics events had to change their courses due to weather issues,” Ski Classics CEO David Nilsson in a press release earlier this week. “We can just cross our fingers that the political leaders at the environmental summit in Paris this week are able to make the right decision.”

For the 2016 season, there are 28 pro teams registered for the Ski Classics series.

After the season opener in Italy, the Ski Classics takes a break until the Jizerská Padesatka in Liberec, Czech Republic, on January 10, 2016. The race series concludes April 2 with Årefjällsloppet in Sweden as the season finale, as it has been for years. New this year is the Toblach/Dobbiaco Cortina, a 50 k classic race in Italy on Feb. 13.

Vasaloppet matters most

For Madshus racer John Kristian Dahl of Norway, who won the Vasaloppet two years ago, the 90 k race from Sälen to Mora in Sweden is the main goal for the 2016 season.

“It’s the longest and one of the oldest races in the circuit, and very special with the flats. That package makes it very unique, and difficult to win, too. In our world, it’s the championships in marathon skiing, and I’m happy that we have it every year,” Dahl said in an interview with Ski Classics earlier this fall.

Live streaming in English

In order for fans to follow the action live, Visma Ski Classics has launched the Live Streaming “Season Pass” available with English commentary on the app or the Tour Live Center at Visma skiclassics.com.

2016 Ski Classics Schedule
1. Dec. 5, 2015: Proteam Tempo Prologue, 15 k classic, Italy
2. Dec. 6, 2015: La Sgambeda, 24 k classic, Italy
3. Jan. 10, 2016: Jizerská Padesatka, 50 k classic, Czech Republic
4. Jan. 23, 2016: La Diagonela, 65 k classic, Switzerland
5. Jan. 31, 2016: Marcialonga, 70 k classic, Italy
6. Feb. 7, 2016: König Ludwig Lauf, 50 k classic, Germany
7. Feb. 13, 2016: Toblach/Dobbiaco Cortina, 50 k classic, Italy
8. March 6, 2016: Vasaloppet, 90 k classic, Sweden
9. March 19, 2016: Birkebeinerrennet, 54 k classic, Norway
10. April 2, 2016: Årefjällsloppet, 65 k classic, Sweden
For race recaps, follow FasterSkier’s marathon blog.
December 4, 2015
Gearing up for the Long Run: Ski Classics’ Jizerská 50 in Czech Republic on Sunday

Start of the Jizerská Padesatka, a 50 k classic race near Liberec Czech, Republic. (Photo: Swix Ski Classics)

Sunday’s 50-kilometer classic race Jizerská Padesatka near Liberec, Czech Republic, is the next event in the 2015 Swix Ski Classics long-distance circuit and racers are eager to hit the tracks after a long break since the first races in Italy in mid-December.

Going into the third event in the Ski Classics (after the opening Pro Team Prologue and La Sgambeda), Norway’s Anders Aukland of Team Santander tops the overall ranking. Johan Kjølstad, who won the overall Ski Classics title last season, is second overall.

In the Ski Classics athlete ranking, 42-year-old Aukland tops the list in front of his younger brother Jørgen Aukland. Kjølstad, who races with Team United Bakeries, is in third place, three points ahead of Czech veteran Stanislav Rezac of Team Silvani Madshus, while Sweden’s Jörgen Brink of Team Lager 157 is fifth overall going into the Jizerská 50 k on Sunday.

In the overall sprint competition, Andreas Nygaard (Team Santander) is currently wearing the green points bib, while Team United Bakeries’ Øystein Pettersen is in second place, 10 points behind Nygaard.

Holly Brooks at the Pro Team Tempo, which opened the Swix Ski Classics season in mid-December in Livigno, Italy. (Photo: Swix Ski Classics)

Brooks Skips the Jizerská

American Holly Brooks, who was picked up by the Aukland brothers’ Team Santander just a day prior to the start of the Ski Classics season, is in sixth place in the women’s overall competition. Seraina Boner of Switzerland, who races for Team Coop, tops both the overall standing as well as the athlete ranking.

However, Brooks is sitting out the Jizerská, returning to Europe for the Dolomitenlauf on Jan. 18, and joining her team for the Marcialonga a week later.

“I’m just trying to balance the FIS Marathon Cup, the Swix Ski Classics, and travel,” Brooks wrote in an email. “In years past I’ve done maybe three races 30K and longer spread out over a season, so I don’t know how my body is going to react and/or how the fatigue will build.

“My goal is to race as much as possible without a downgrade in performance,” she added. “I have a feeling I will be very, very tired by the end of the season.”

New Women Join Circuit

Prior to the Jizerská, the competition for the women’s overall Ski Classics title gets tougher. Three different Pro Teams have entered new female skiers into the long-distance series: Norway’s Hilde Landheim will race for Team Coop, Viktoria Melina joins the Russian Marathon Team, and Masako Ishida of Japan will race for Team United Bakeries.

In the Ski Classics, each professional team may enter a total of 10 skiers per season, male and female skiers included. Once entered, the teams may not unregister athletes, but they can enter additional athletes until they reach the maximum of 10 skiers.

Stellar Conditions

Czech Republich, home of the Jizerská 50, which will be held on Sunday, as pictured on Jan. 6.

Last year, the Jizerská races were canceled due to lack of snow, so event organizers are especially excited to put on the races this year and are proud to present stellar conditions on the race course. Promising weather forecasts, decent snowfall in the past week and cold weather have made it possible to produce enough artificial snow to cover the whole course, and the organizers are confident that they will be able to run the race as planned given the weather forecast, which predicted snow at the start and temperatures around freezing.

“We are happy to see that the weather has turned fine and the winter conditions have finally arrived,” Martin Koucky, a member of the Jizerská 50 Organizing Committee, said in a press release. “The whole Jizerská 50 track is now covered with snow while the race preparations continue to run along at full speed. There are some thirty centimeters of artificial and natural snow at potential critical points: at the Bedrichov stadium as

In addition to the 50 k Ski Classic on Sunday, the Jizerská race weekend opens with a 30 k skate race and a children’s race on Friday, and also offers a 25 k classic race as well as a corporate relay race on Saturday. New this year is a 1.5-kilometer double-pole sprint on Friday.

Six More Marathons on Tap

Team United Bakeries’ Pettersen (14), Berdal (11), and Kjølstad (13) at last month’s La Sgambeda in Livigno, Italy. (Photo Swix Ski Classics)

After the Jizerská 50 on Sunday, the Ski Classics moves to Switzerland for the brand-new La Diagonela on Jan. 17.

La Diagonela was introduced to the race series last winter as a replacement for the Jizerská 50, which was be canceled, but was such a success that the circuit included the race as a new, permanent installment on the Ski Classics calendar for the 2014/2015 season. This year, the 65-kilometer La Diagonela will be held on a picturesque new course through the villages of St. Moritz, Zuoz and Pontresina in the Engadin Valley.

After the stop in Switzerland, the Ski Classics moves to Italy for the Marcialonga in the valleys of Val di Fassa and Val di Fiemme on Jan. 25. The 70 k race is famous for its notorious final uphill climb, the Cascata, to the finish in Cavalese town square.

From Italy, the Pro Teams travel to Germany for the 50 k König Ludwig Lauf in Oberammergau, Bavaria, on Feb. 1.

After the König Ludwig Lauf, the athletes get a well-deserved break from competing until the legendary 90 k Vasaloppet from Saelen to Mora, Sweden, on March 8.

After Vasaloppet, the circuit moves on to Norway’s Birkebeinerrennet on March 21. The 54 k classic race starts in Rena, crosses to mountains to the finish line in Lillehammer, the host of the 1994 Winter Olympics.

The series once again ends with the season finale Årefjällsloppet in Sweden on March 28. The 75 k race offers stunning views from the in Vallbo to the finish line in Åre.

More information and complete Ski Classics schedule

January 9, 2015
Aukland, Hansson and Team Exspirit in the Ski Classics Lead

Jizerska Padesatka 2011 – Men's Podium – Oskar Svard, Anders Aukland, Stanislav Rezac

After a long and intense battle between Oskar Svärd, Team Exspirit, and Anders Aukland, Team Xtra Personell, the later turned out victorious in the Ski Classics event Jizerska Padesatka held this weekend in Bedrichov, Czech Republic.

The two broke away after the first 10k climb and stayed together until the Smedava climb at kilometer 30. In the climb Anders Aukland went all in and showed great climbing skills. Third came Stanislav Rezac, Team Patria Direct, and fourth Mathias Fredriksson, Team Exspirit, after a sprint against Audun Laugaland, Team United Bakeries, who finished in 5^thplace.

The women’s race was won by Sandra Hansson, Team United Bakeries. Second was Seraina Boner from Engadin Skimarathon Team, and third and fourth place went to two Team Exspirit skiers, Susanne Nyström and Jenny Hansson.

In the Ski Classics Team competition, where the two best male and single best female skier count, the Swedish based Team Exspirit leads ahead of the two Norwegian teams – Team United Bakeries and Team Xtra Personell. Lars Ljung from Helsinge Ski Team is the current leader of the Ski Classics youth competition, the best skier under the age of 26.

Next Ski Classics race is the Marcialonga, Italy on the 30^th of January.

Further info on www.skiclassics.com

Jizerska Padesatka 2011 – Complete Results (PDF)

Jizerska Padesatka 2011 – Women's Podium – Serraina Boner, Sandra Hansson, Susanne Nyström

January 11, 2011
“Ski Classics” Introduces Team Tactics in XC Skiing

OSLO, Norway – Joergen Aukland and fellow Norwegian Kjartan Roland were the original marathon specialists, who almost singlehandedly represented Norway consistently in the large international ski marathons outside of Norway.

But that was ten years ago. Today, thousands of Norwegians travel to marathons such as Italy’s Marcialonga, and the races now boast a number of high-profile athletes, including Aukland and his brother, Anders.

Both have fought for fame and glory, mostly for their own personal bragging rights, but with the launch of Ski Classics, they now have to consider their team – in this case, Team Xtra Personell. Ski Classics is a points-based competition running across all the season’s big marathons, with a Tour de France-style yellow jersey for the overall Ski Classic Champion, a pink jersey for the top racer under 25, a sprint jersey and a team jersey. Team points are awarded to the top two men and top two women in each race.

“It’s really exciting that we get something like this. I’ve dreamt about it for a decade. Now we can race even more like a team in the big marathons,” Joergen Aukland told Langrenn.com.

Sprint points will also count toward the overall team points throughout the season. One tricky issue for Team Xtra Personell is that they lack a strong female skier on their squad, who would have the potential to earn the women’s points. Both brothers Aukland and team manager Nils Marius Otterstad, exchanged furtive glances when Langrenn.com asked about who might step into that role during the formal launch of the Ski Classics in Oslo on November 29.

The races in Ski Classics 2011:
1 – Jizerska Padesatka, Czeck Republic, January 9, 2011
2 – Marcialonga, Italy, January 30, 2011
3 – König Ludwig Lauf, Germany, February 6, 2011
4 – Vasaloppet, Sweden, March 6, 2011
5 – Birkebeinerrennet, Norway, March 19, 2011
Final – Norefjellrennet, Norway, April 2, 2011

All six events will be televised live for Norwegian viewers via TV2, except for the Birkie, which can been seen live on NRK.

From Langrenn.com, November 30, 2010. By Geir Nilsen, translation by Inge Scheve

December 1, 2010
Sweden Sweeps FIS Marathon #2: the Jizerská Padesatka

Oskar Svard finishes just ahead of Alsgaard in the 50km Jizerská Padesátka, FIS Marathon

Oskar Svärd and Sandra Hansson, both from Sweden, won their respective titles in the second FIS Marathon Cup this Sunday. The Jizerská Padesatka is a 50km classic race held in Bedrichov, Czech Republic.

Estonian Andrus Veerpalu took the early lead in the men’s race, but there was a large pack of very strong racers such as Oskar Svärd, Jerry Ahrlin, Thomas Alsgaard, Mario Cattaneo and Stanizlav Rezac who skied together until the end.

Alsgaard (NOR), who has come out of retirement this year to compete in the Marathon series, seemed in the last kilometers to have a good hold on the race, but it was Svärd who had the final edge in the sprint and took the win. Local hero Stanislav Rezac of the Czech Republic came in third. Despite being such a long race, the top eight men finished within just 5 seconds of each other.

Svärd is now the overall leader of the FIS Marathon Cup series.

The women’s race was much more spread out, as winner Sandra Hansson won by more than 7 minutes over Jenny Hansson. Sussane Nyström came in third, another 3 minutes back.

Sweden stacked the women’s results, as the top four (including fourth place Nina Lintzen) were all from Sweden. Only these four received Marathon Cup points, however, as points are given only to those who are %10 back from the winning time.

Jenny Hansson is now the overall leader in the FIS Marathon Cup.

Men’s Results

Women’s Results

Profile of the Jizerská Padesátka 50km Marathon

January 13, 2010